The present invention relates to the packing of integrated circuits in tape and reel packaging, and more particularly to ensuring packing in a proper orientation.
In the manufacture of large-scale integrated circuit devices, it is necessary to package the devices in a way which minimizes handling, and which minimizes potential damage to the devices, particularly to the device leads. For customers requiring large numbers of identical devices, the integrated circuit devices frequently are packaged in elongated strips of sealed xe2x80x9cpocket tape.xe2x80x9d Such pocket tape normally comprises a carrier tape made of a flexible plastic material in which a series of adjacent pockets are formed. The pocket size is selected to accommodate correspondingly-sized integrated circuit packages, with one package being placed in each pocket. The pockets are arranged to run the length of the carrier tape, which also typically includes perforated flanges along each edge of the tape for utilization in indexing machines, where the devices subsequently are removed from the carrier tape.
At the manufacturer of the devices, the carrier tape is moved along while the devices are inserted, and then a releasable cover tape is sealed to the carrier tape along the edges of the different pockets to hold the devices in the pockets. After this is done, the sealed pocket tape is rolled up on reels for delivery. The orientation of the packages in the pockets of the reels follows according to specifications of the particular device package. Normally, inspection of the orientation of the packages in the pockets of the carrier tape involves visual monitoring by an operator, which is prone to human error.
Accordingly, a need exists for package orientation detection for tape and reel packing operations that is automated and more reliable than human, visual inspection.
The present invention meets this need.
Aspects for detecting integrated circuit package orientation in carrier tape packing are described. In accordance with these aspects, a digital circuit is provided over a carrier rail of a tape and reel system. The digital circuit detects package orientation based on a chamfer side of packages within a tape on the carrier rail. The digital circuit further includes at least two optical sensors, where the optical sensors emit a light beam and sense reflection of the light beam for each package within the tape for use in determining package orientation in an automated manner.
With the aspects of the present invention, orientation checking for tape and reel systems is improved through automated checking mechanisms that result in less chance for human error in identifying wrongly oriented packages in tape pockets. These and other advantages of the present invention will be more fully understood in conjunction with the following detailed description and accompanying drawings.